News in brief

London mayor favours Thames estuary airport

London's mayor, Boris Johnson, has called for an "urgent" study into building a new airport in the Thames estuary. Johnson said the capital needed further airport capacity to alleviate dire conditions for passengers. "It is ever more urgent that we investigate the possibility of a long-term solution, in the form of a new and more eco-friendly international airport at a site in the Thames estuary," he said in his weekly newspaper column. The mayor, who has no control over airport construction, said voters would be hearing "a lot more in due course" about a new airport.Dan Milmo

InterContinental looks up in a downturn

InterContinental Hotels Group, the world's largest hotelier, has recruited more franchisee partners for new developments in the first six months of 2008 than it did in the same period last year - despite difficult debt and property markets. Chief executive Andy Cosslett said the US remained its "biggest engine for pipeline growth". Some analysts remained "highly sceptical" about the likely fruition of these deals. Meanwhile, seven hotels in Beijing were opened last month, just in time for the Olympics, but IHG said it would miss a target of opening 125 hotels in China in 2008.Simon Bowers

Soaring costs threaten infrastructure projects

Big infrastructure projects are facing budget-busting cost increases as raw material and labour costs soar, says a report out today. With projects such as Crossrail and the Olympics, "the civil engineering sector seems well placed to ride out the economic downturn," said Joe Martin, executive director of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors' building cost information service. But rising costs and the downturn "could result in delays and cancellation". The RICS report warned costs have risen by 12.2% over the past year and are expected to rise by another 12% over the next two years.Mark Milner

Leona Lewis song is an internet favourite

X Factor winner Leona Lewis attracted more British internet users to pick her song Bleeding Love to accompany their homemade online videos than any other artist last year. The MCPS-PRS Alliance, which collects and pays royalties to composers and songwriters, said the track was the most popular on websites such as YouTube, iTunes and Bebo, which it licenses to use copyrighted music. It collects money when songs - either original versions or covers by video uploaders - are played. The websites themselves pay the royalties for songs uploaded and viewed by British users. Richard Wray